In the busy land of Chu, lived a merchant named Mr. Sparkle. He had some truly lovely pearls, round and shimmering, like tiny drops of moonlight. Mr. Sparkle wanted everyone to see how special his pearls were. "Hmm," he thought, "I need something amazing to put them in!"

So, Mr. Sparkle set to work. He found the finest, smoothest wood. He polished it until it shone like glass. He decorated it with tiny, bright blue feathers and sprinkled it with sweet-smelling spices. The box he made was so beautiful, so wonderfully crafted, that it almost glowed.

Pleased with his work, Mr. Sparkle placed his lovely pearls inside this magnificent box and took it to the market in the land of Zheng.

Soon, a wealthy man, let's call him Mr. Dazzle, was strolling through the market. His eyes caught sight of Mr. Sparkle's display. His eyes popped open wide. Not at the pearls, oh no! He was staring at the BOX.

"My goodness!" exclaimed Mr. Dazzle. "That is the most wonderful, most beautiful, most amazing box I have ever seen! How much for it?"

Mr. Sparkle, thinking Mr. Dazzle meant the pearls inside the beautiful box, named a very high price.

Mr. Dazzle didn't even blink. He happily paid the money. He took the magnificent box in his hands, admiring the smooth wood, the bright feathers, and sniffing the sweet spices.

Then, he carefully opened the magnificent box, took out the shimmering pearls, handed them back to a very surprised Mr. Sparkle, and said, "Thank you for the box! It's perfect!"

And off he went, hugging the empty, beautiful box, leaving Mr. Sparkle standing there with his lovely pearls and a very puzzled look on his face.

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